Chapter 205: That

In the blink of an eye three days passed, the Jiang family had no news; presumably with that much silver they couldn't produce it, and even if they could, they wouldn't be willing to part with it for two half‑grown children.

After all, although these two children study under a master, they are not as attractive as Yuan Jiaqi.

Being at the top of the list means they will certainly pass the imperial examination, become officials; seeing no hope, they only watch and are unwilling to invest capital.

Days passed day by day, the drought grew worse; the Beifang, which should be in the rainy season, was scorched by the blazing sun daily, and even the leaves began to wilt.

The crops in the fields have withered; at this rate, by October they will harvest hardly any grain.

She sighed, and by the moonlight, on the barren land north of the Small Town, she opened a pit about one mu in size, filled it with water, then went to the south of the town and dug an identical pit and filled it.

She is now just at the sixth stage of Foundation Building, and does not yet have the power to summon wind and rain or move mountains and seas; if not for the space, she couldn't even be a water‑transport worker.

The water in the two deep pits alleviated the water needs of the people around Tianshui Town; Qiao Mai goes there each night to store some water, keeping it constantly full.

Some say that the people of Tianshui Town often do good deeds, so the heavens bless them, and the water of the two large pits appeared out of nowhere.

Otherwise she would have become a member of the fleeing‑from‑famine masses, which is not what she wants.

People from some other Small Towns also come here to draw water; because the water source is abundant, no fights have occurred.

The townsfolk clap and shout, "Well killed, a swift death; people like that deserve to die."

One night, at the arrival of the New Year, so many lives were taken that it immediately caused a sensation throughout the Weicheng jurisdiction.

The crime scene yielded no suspicious items, so the victims' families were asked to take the bodies back and bury them, to discuss the case once it is solved.

However, this would be very advantageous for Prefect Wang; perhaps the current sovereign, upon learning of it, might promote and favor him.

When Qiao Mai was sold, her older brother and second brother didn't think much of it.

Prefect Wang didn't mind the matter, because the dead were local thugs and tyrants who deserved it; in such cases, many martial‑world heroes who can't stand it simply kill them on the spot.

If the people of Weicheng get through it, the residents of other cities and counties should be fine, since their disaster situation isn't as severe as here.

Zongsheng personally led men to inspect; all had their throats cut cleanly, without any pain— the method was neat and efficient.

Selling one's own maiden to support the whole family feels terribly uncomfortable.

If that child really is the Third Son, then they can openly negotiate terms with that scoundrel.

The elders of these two families now have more time to gather; when idle they sit opposite Jixiang Yuan, eyeing the grand Dameng hungrily.

The tenant families of Qiao Mai's household asked her early on whether to deliver sweet potatoes, or sell them for silver and then buy grain for her.

Qiao Shicheng and his wife were at a loss, so they sold one of their granddaughters to a wealthy household to work as a servant girl.

When Qiao Shicheng sold a granddaughter, the Qiao family began to quarrel and split.

Because of the Upgrade, the water pond of tens of thousands of mu is now twice as large as before, and the water source can supply Weicheng's jurisdiction for another year.

"Those who profit from national calamities shall die!"

It's not that Qiao Mai is stingy; she just doesn't want people to know her household's water source is abundant.

The water at Qiao Ji Snack Shop is no longer free; it now costs one Wen per cup, which isn't expensive, and many people drink it.

The Wang family resumed collecting sweet potatoes; because that's what was planted this year, the price is slightly lower, though not much, and the townsfolk are satisfied.

Qiao Mai didn't make them work; she simply converted them into silver.

They say the Prefect of Weicheng is an incorruptible official, a good official, truly a great officer who cares for the people; the heavens bless his jurisdiction, so even without rain the people won't die of thirst and the crops won't wither.

When it comes to selling one's own maiden, it's unbearably hard; even with a preference for sons, after all it's one's own daughter.

She does not want to see masses of disaster‑stricken people flee south, nor many children lose their families, and she certainly does not want the plague to spread, leaving corpses everywhere.

Time drifts slowly, the oppressive summer is about to end, and the crops in the fields have entered the ripening season.

In a great battle, the Qiao family didn't hold out long and split; Qiao Shicheng and his wife, like the Yuan family couple, were cast out by their children.

The Tian Family, meanwhile, places all hope on Ling'er, hoping that Tian Sanzhuang will hurry back.

Selling sweet potatoes and buying grain to pay the grain tax is also very profitable.

Mayor Qian takes this matter seriously, sending two guards to watch the pits daily, hoping everyone can use the water and to prevent unscrupulous people from profiting from the two pits.

Seeing the weather like this again, Qiao Mai worries; it looks like she'll have to be a water‑transport worker again next year.

If we're to be nervous, let's all be nervous; collecting money is just to let everyone know that the Qiao household's water source is also insufficient.

This winter was colder later than last year; only by mid‑twelfth month did a light snow fall, and the temperature suddenly dropped.

In the end, he can just shift the blame onto the martial‑world folk.

She wants a peaceful ordinary life, so she must strive to change this situation as much as possible.

One night she set up seven pit points, which accounted for dozens of lives, and Qiao Mai didn't even blink before the outcome.

At the arrival of the New Year, Qiao Mai again filled the water pits across the region in the middle of the night, hoping they have a good year.

Who exactly is it? Who has such great ability?

The method of the crimes is the same, and the timing differs little, as if the pits were operated simultaneously.

Thus, she goes out each night, digging pits and storing water in sections of Weicheng's jurisdiction, truly becoming a water‑transport worker now.

No one passes the turn to anyone else; they take turns delivering meals, and when they can't move, each family takes turns serving; no one wants to live together with them.

She never dealt with those corpses, leaving them by the pits and writing on their fee signboards.

In Lihua Village, the Qiao family's harvest was poor; after paying taxes little remains, and if there is no relief this winter, the whole family will starve.

But while storing water, she discovered several pits were being occupied; if they hadn't lit campfires, spoken those words, and there was a conspicuous sign nearby, she wouldn't have known that the water pits were now charging fees.

Damn, they don't even think; if the heavens truly knew, it would have rained already.

With her covert assistance, the drought in Weicheng's jurisdiction eased considerably, and then more townsfolk reported.

That household thought, the next will have to sell their own maiden; the money goes to the public, which is unprofitable, so even if they sell, they sell themselves and spend the money themselves.

She often sits in front of her own shop, watching the waterwheels on the Guan Dao moving south and north, all transporting water from the pits; with water, no one flees disaster.

At that time Qiao Mai's anger flared; damn it, she, who dug pits and stored water, didn't charge anyone, yet those damned brats would take what's already there, occupy the pits and charge the townsfolk water fees.

Winter is better than summer, at least there's no scorching sun, so moisture doesn't evaporate so quickly; one pit of water can serve the surrounding people for a long time, and as long as it isn't wasted, there's no problem.

It is said that the drought in Weicheng's jurisdiction is the worst; heading south would be better, and if this continues, next year will see a fleeing‑from‑famine situation.

This year, there was nothing that could make her happy; the only thing that gave her comfort was that the space had been upgraded again, and all the metrics were much stronger than the previous level.

After the incident of Qiao Mai killing a chicken for the monkeys to watch, no one dared to charge at the pit any longer, and the townsfolk could freely go fetch water.

This year passed by just barely like that; on the Small Town, everyone except Qiao Mai's family was living very tightly.

The poor have neither money nor water and are tight; the rich have money but no water and are also tight.

Anyway, this year, everyone's lives were not very Ruyi.

(End of Chapter)